1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to communications systems, methods and devices. More particularly, exemplary embodiments of the invention concern systems and methods directed to receiving and displaying content in a ticker on a communication device.
2. Related Technology
The popularity of the Internet has given rise to a plethora of information services as consumers have become accustomed to accessing timely, personalized news and information. As a result, demand for these types of content services continues to grow. Scrolling information displays, referred to herein as “tickers,” are one type of content distribution mechanism that can give a viewer a quick, high-level update, and they have become commonplace on the television news and on sports channels, providing viewers with “at-a-glance” headlines, breaking news, weather reports, sports scores and other updates.
One early example of a scrolling information display or “ticker” on a personal computer (PC) system was that provided by Pointcast. Through the Pointcast service, PC users could subscribe to news and information channels of interest and receive periodic updates on their computer displays, often in the form of a scrolling information display at the bottom of the user's display screen—commonly known as a ticker. An even earlier example of the use of tickers in conjunction with a PC was the ticker provided by gaming company Catapult Entertainment, Inc. The Catapult ticker, in addition to providing information to users of the gaming system about news and current events and gaming-related information such as upcoming tournaments, high scores, and new software releases, was also interactive through the use of the computer mouse. Rather than being limited to the information in the ticker, the user could click on an item in the ticker having a Universal Resource Identifier (URI) associated with it, which would then cause a web page to be displayed with additional information about that item. More recently, through the use of messaging systems with near-universal reach such as the Short Messaging System (SMS), mobile workers can now receive up-to-the-minute business, financial and customer information on their mobile devices from various news and entertainment content providers and from many other information sources, including corporate portals and customer relationship management applications. Furthermore, tickers are beginning to appear as a method for dynamic information display on mobile communication devices, such as cellular telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and “smart” phones.
While the value of receiving personalized, timely information in a condensed, quickly-read format such as a ticker is indisputable, the information tickers known in the art could be significantly improved. Since it is likely that content from many different sources will be received by and displayed in a ticker on a communication device, it would be valuable both to the communication device user and to the content provider to display content in the ticker at a time, in an order, with a frequency and with presentation attributes that reflect the characteristics of the content, such as its source, the time sensitivity and priority of the content, any applicable advertising and marketing agreements associated with the content, and the preferences of the communication device user. Such a ticker content scheduling system is described in the following disclosure.